I’m Off of the Floor, One More Time to Find You (Mark/Lexie, Part 2/?)

Owen wasn’t surprised in the least when the Porsche squealed to a stop on the curb outside of his house and Mark got out, a cloud of absolute fury brewing on his face. He stalked up the front path to the porch steps Owen was sitting on but Owen’s face remained stoic as he sipped at the bottle of beer in his hand.

“Get your fucking ass in that house right now and put on a suit,” Mark ordered.

Owen shook his head. “I told you. I’m not going.”

“I don’t give a shit what you told me. Sadie is getting married today-”

“To a complete asshole,” Owen interrupted before taking another chug of beer. “I’m not going to go there and pretend to be all happy about this.”

The old Mark Sloan would have punched him in the face for that but Owen was his best friend and it was rather obvious that this wasn’t his first beer that day despite it being barely eleven o’clock in the morning. It was no longer a habit of Mark’s to go around, punching his best friend in the face, especially when said best friend was drunk.

Instead, Mark reached out and snatched the beer out of his hand before another sip could be taken. “You’re going.” When Owen didn’t move, Mark crossed his arms over his chest and clenched his jaw. Many an intern had started to quiver when he stood like that. “I mean it, Owen. You’re going.”

Owen shook his head. “You honestly think that this marriage between Sadie and him is going to last? Just look at you and Lexie. You barely lasted and you two are you.”

“Things are good between us right now,” Mark said, his arms still crossed, his body still tense and tight. He hadn’t come over here to talk about this. “I moved back in and-”

“And how long is that going to last?”

“It’ll last,” Mark ground out.

His voice was firm, not a single ounce of doubt lacing his tone. He would be the first to admit that the past three years – ever since Ally was born – had been rough for Lexie and him but they were working through it. They were making their way past everything and they were going to last. Every couple had their ups and downs and despite all of that, they were still one of the most stable at the hospital.

“We can’t let Sadie marry him,” Owen said. “You keep saying how we’re family, how we’re her best friends. Then we need to do something to stop this.”

Mark shook his head. “We can’t. This is what she wants. And as her family, we have to go and try and be happy for her.”

“Look,” Mark sighed heavily, sinking himself down next to him on the top step of the porch and loosening his tie. “You told her what you saw in Joe’s that night, right?” He paused and Owen nodded. “And she didn’t believe you. As much as that sucks, she didn’t believe you. So what can you do? Sadie always does what she wants to do and this is just one more thing.”

Mark shrugged. “Then she’ll be divorced within the year and have to admit that you were right all along. And then we go and get her drunk and help her through it all. It’s what you two did for me when Lexie left me and it’s what we’ll do for Sadie if she needs us to.”

Owen was quiet for a moment and looking down at the beer bottle still in his hand that he had snatched from him, Mark took a sip of the bitter-tasting alcohol himself.

“Is it good to be home?” Owen asked suddenly, quietly.

Mark couldn’t help but smile just at the thought of sharing a bed with Lexie again and being there to watch cartoons with Ally in the mornings.

“It’s amazing,” he said with a nod of his head. “It’s where I’m always supposed to be.” He took another sip of the beer. “She wants to go see a marriage counselor.”

“So go,” Owen shrugged.

“Yeah, I know. And I will,” he sighed heavily. “It’s just… marriage counseling? Really? That’s what me and Lexie have come to now?”

Owen smirked. “I hate to tell you this, Mark, but you have issues. I should know. I have issues myself.”

That made Mark smirk as well and he tipped his head back, downing the rest of the beer, finishing it. He then handed Owen the empty bottle and stood up again. “You’re coming today. If not for Sadie then at least do it for Ally. She’s the flower girl and she’ll be crushed if her favorite uncle isn’t there to see her.”